Last week we had a FUN workshop with some of the greatest Recreation Therapists from Rocky Mountain Care Center. Here is some follow up items from this workshop which I thought everyone could use:

Aliha from Molina came to speak with us regarding Senior Wellness. Adam is my contact person at Molina, his number is 80-542-7913. You can schedule with him some great presentations with your seniors regarding wellness programs. If you have a specific topic then let him know other wise he has some neat presentations. He and his staff are awesome about getting seniors involved.

Are you often asked by your fellow co-workers what Recreation Therapy is? And then after explaining they still give you a puzzled look? Here is a brief explanation you can share with them.

According to the American Therapeutic Recreation Association (ATRA), Recreational Therapy means a treatment service designed to restore, remediate and rehabilitate a person’s level of functioning and independence in life activities, to promote health and wellness as well as reduce or eliminate the activity limitations and restrictions to participation in life situations caused by an illness or disabling condition.

Recreational Therapists help people who are injured to get active again. They use sports, games, arts, crafts, and music to help patients build confidence and get back into life. Diversion activities are conducted by individuals who focus on games and pastimes for fun.

Recreational Therapists find out what patients need. They do this by looking at medical records and talking to other staff. They also listen to the patients and their families. They then make up a program to help the person. For instance, they might help a right-handed girl who can’t use her right arm any more to throw a ball with her left arm.

Let’s look at bowling; while one may look at this activity as just a fun outing for our clients, as Recreational Therapists we incorporate the needs of the client through their care plan. With bowling a Recreational Therapist can assist a client who may have balance issue regain strength. Bowling incorporates social skills, leisure education, cognitive functioning and self esteem.

At Neighborhood House we have OT interns who do amazing projects for us. On of the interns put together this list of Dementia Support Groups for Caregivers. I have given this to many family members who where so thankful for such a great list!

Join us on June 21, 2013 for The Longest Day® , as together we honor those living with Alzheimer’s disease and their caregivers. Organize a team for this sunrise-to-sunset event and raise funds and awareness for Alzheimer’s care, support and research.

This event is about patience, strength and endurance – but it’s also about a challenge. On The Longest Day, do something you love – or try something new – to advance the cause! For people facing Alzheimer’s disease, this challenge is every day. For you, it’s just one.

URTA Conference

The URTA Conference is coming up soon. Remember the early bird registration for conference is this coming Friday, it needs to be postmarked by the 18th to get the discount. Also don’t forget that nominations for awards deadline is coming up soon as well, have a say in who gets these awards!!

Ms. Taxin from Dopl will be doing a presentation at the conference on Friday morning. She will be covering what DOPL does, legislative items and CEU info. If you have any specific questions you would like her to address if there is time, please email them to Michele Beal ASAP (before Jan. 30th) at epuka1@yahoo.com

At the conference URTA would like to have an “information exchange” table. Bring copies of some of your favorite groups, activities, crafts, ways to process etc. URTA will put them on the table for everyone to share. Please give on copy to Michele so she can either make more or post them on the website if we run out!

And last but not least we are looking for sponsors for our meals. If your facility wants to donate a portion or full meal let Laura Bennion know atlbsnowboard@gmail.com The facility or persons name who donated will be put on a poster)

With the new changes in the CEU’s there have been some confusion to how many CEU’s RT’s need to obtain before May, how to get CEU’s, who can present CEU’s, and where to get CEU’s. Hopefully I can help clarify these questions and answer any others you may have.

Rule R156-40. Recreational Therapy Practice Act Rule.

In accordance with Section 58-40-304, qualified continuing education requirements are established as follows:

(1) All licensed MTRS, TRS, and TRT’s shall complete 20 hours of qualified continuing education or provide a current CTRS certification during each two-year period of licensure.

(2) Qualified continuing education hours for licensees who have not been licensed for the entire two- year period will be prorated from the date of licensure.

(3) Continuing education under this section shall:

(a) be relevant to the licensee’s professional practice;

(b) be prepared and presented by individuals who are qualified by education, training and experience to provide recreational therapy continuing education; and

(c) have a method of verification of attendance and completion.

(4) Credit for continuing education shall be recognized in accordance with the following:

(a) unlimited hours shall be recognized for continuing education completed in blocks of time of not less than 50 minutes in formally established classroom courses, seminars, lectures, conferences or training sessions which meet the criteria listed in Subsection (3) above, and which are approved by, conducted by, or under the sponsorship of:

(i) the Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing;

(ii) recognized universities and colleges; or

(iii) professional associations, societies and organizations representing a licensed profession whose program objectives relate to the practice of recreational therapy;

(b) a maximum of ten hours per two-year period may be recognized for teaching continuing education courses relevant to recreational therapy;

(c) a maximum of 12 hours per two-year period may be recognized for continuing education that is provided via the internet and/or webinar which provides a certificate of completion;

(d) a maximum of six hours per two-year period may be recognized for continuing education provided by the Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing;

(e) a maximum of four hours per two-year period may be recognized for CPR and first aid certification through a live course, not online; and

(f) a maximum of six hours per two-year period may be recognized for publications in an article, journal, newsletter or other professional publications.

(5) If properly documented that a licensee is subject to circumstances which prevent that licensee from meeting the continuing education requirements established under this section, the licensee may be excused from the requirement for a period of up to three years. However it is the responsibility of the licensee to document the reasons and justify why the requirement could not be met.

(6) A licensee shall be responsible for maintaining competent records of completed qualified continuing education for a period of six years and if requested, demonstrate the licensee meets requirements under this section.

Now that we have what it say’s, what does it all mean? This came into effect on December 1, 2012 which means CUE’s will be prorated and RT’s will need to get six hours by May 31, 2013. Every two years RT’s need to get20 hours. CEU’s can be obtained by attending ATRA conference, URTA conference, Therapeutic Recreation workshops, seminars. webinars and online training to name a few. There are a few things you need to keep in mind when attending these venue’s in order to get the CEU’s.

1. The presenter needs to be “qualify to teach” recreation therapy context. This does not mean the presenter needs to be a Recreation Therapist. For instance an SSW would be able to teach context relevant to recreation therapy but a Hospital Administrator would not unless they have qualifications. You need to make sure you have the qualifications of the presenter so there is no misunderstandings and keep this information in a file.

2. Online presentations and webinars apply to the the same qualifications. When participating in an online/webinar training’s make sure the creditials are clearly outlined as to who put it together and what resources were used.

3. You can only get a max of 12 hours of CEU’s from internet based presentations.

If you attend a conference for 4 hours then you will receive .4 CEU’s.

5. You are responsible for keeping track of you CEU’s. On the home page of trconnections.com click on training and under the documentation section you will find an RT CEU Tracking form button. You will be able to pull up the tracking sheet and utilize this in keeping track of your CEU’s. Place this in a file you are keeping all your CEU information.

I hope this clears up some of the muddy waters on this new law. If you have any more questions please feel free to ask and we will find out the answer for you.